Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has emphatically stated that Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden is a “world class” player.

The England international scored a top-drawer goal to equalise against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night and Henry says that the player is now taking games by the scruff of the neck, much like some of his teammates:

“What I would say about Phil Foden this year is that when Erling Haaland is not there or Kevin De Bruyne is injured, now he puts this team on his shoulders…”

“Now we can start talking world class because you put your team on your shoulders this guy is now world class.”

There has been some controversy about Foden’s “world class” status

Back in February, TNT Sports pundit Rio Ferdinand got himself into hot water with Arsenal fans after claiming Bukayo Saka wasn’t world class.

He contrasted the Gunners player’s achievements to Foden‘s, who had already won multiple league titles and the Champions League, to make his point. Henry is now effectively backing Ferdinand’s assertion about the City playmaker.

The City star is favourite for the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award

Despite performing exceptionally well for the Premier League champions in previous seasons, Foden has moved up to another level this campaign.

In 45 appearances for the Cityzens, the midfielder has racked up an incredible 22 goals and 10 assists. Many pundits now regard him as the leading contender for individual accolades.

The bookmakers currently have Foden as the frontrunner for the Players’ Player of the Year prize, with Bet 365 placing his odds at 6/4, ahead of teammate Rodri and Arsenal’s Declan Rice.

If he continues in this rich vein of form, it looks likely that Foden will play a vital role in City winning more trophies, both domestically and potentially in Europe too.